The Crocodile
by Third Phoenix
Summary: A flashback of the Pendergast brothers. Aloysius is about to return to school and has an encounter with Diogenes he is not likely to forget.


Note: Aloysius and Diogenes Pendergast are owned by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. The references to the crocodile was inspired by a line from another fanfiction. If I knew the title or the author, I would give credit and thanks.

"Ave, Frater."

The deep voice penetrated Aloysius' slumber. Should he open his eyes, find out what his maniacal, 17-year-old brother wants? Or should he feign a deep sleep and avoid him? Curiosity always wins out for this 19-year-old.

"What is it, Diogenes?" He rolled over to face his brother, standing by his bedside.

"Sleeping at this hour, Frater? Tsk-tsk," he cooed at his older brother.

"It is 3:00 in the morning, _Frater_, when do you sleep?"

"Only when my mind allows me. Besides, I'm surprised you can sleep, what with me wide awake, lurking about the house. Who knows what I may do!" He stared down at his brother and winked.

"Believe me, I sleep much better when I'm away at school."

"Ah, yes. Your studies. The family is always so pleased when Saint Aloysius returns home for break. It's as if they believe you're off in battle," he sneered.

"Jealousy will get you nowhere, Diogenes." Despite being the older brother, Aloysius was always a little afraid of his younger brother. There was something about him that just sent a chill down his spine. Maybe it was his confident stride. Maybe it was the fact that he knew he could be overpowered by Diogenes if he ever became physical. Maybe it was the dark lurk in his eyes. His eyes in general creeped him out: one a brilliant hazel, the other a milky blue. Aloysius could never quite place the feeling of guilt he felt when he looked into his brother's eyes. It wasn't his fault the poor kid had Scarlet Fever after all...

"Is there a reason you are in here?" Aloysius asked. He was eager to get him out.

"Not in particular," Diogenes said. He stared at his brother for a moment and then sat himself down on the edge of the bed. Aloysius sat up and rested his back against the headboard.

"Do you remember when we were younger? You did so much together. We were inseparable."

"Of course I do," Aloysius almost stammered. It was not like Diogenes to be nostalgic.

"What happened?" His mismatched eyed penetrated Aloysius' vibrant blue ones.

It took a moment for Aloysius to recover from his brother's blunt question "You got sick. Mother says it affected you in more ways than we know," he said quietly.

"Sick?" the ginger-haired brother almost spat out.

"Well, yes. Don't you remem-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Diogenes had lunged at Aloysius, covering him with his body. He straddled his lap and grabbed a hold of the front of Aloysius' pajamas, pulling his face close to his own. The older brother grabbed his younger one's hands, trying to wrench himself free. But, of course, Diogenes had overpowered him. The nostalgia Aloysius had noticed in his eyes was replaced with hate. It pained Aloysius to realize that this was the Diogenes he had become accustomed to looking at.

"When are you ever going to remember?" he growled. "When are you ever going to realize it's your fault, Aloysius?" he was pleading with him. Aloysius' stomach dropped at the change in his brother's tone.

"Remember what? What are you talking about?" he wanted nothing more than to understand.

"You really don't remember do you? You're not just feigning ignorance; you really have blocked it," Diogenes said sadly. Slowly, he released his grip on his older brother and climbed off of him. As he began walking towards the door, Aloysius could stand it no longer.

"Diogenes, wait! Why won't you just tell me?" Now he was pleading.

Diogenes slowly turned his body around, his eyes shining in the moonlight pooling through the windows. "Do you return to school tomorrow, Frater?"

"Yes," Aloysius whispered.

Without another word, Diogenes turned and skulked out of the room.

Aloysius didn't see Diogenes at all the next day. As the sun began to set, he went up to his bedroom to pack his things for his return to school. Perhaps he would write his brother a letter, try to repair their damaged relationship. Aloysius knew that almost everyone in the family felt uncomfortable in Diogenes' presence. He couldn't lie; he did, too. But there was still time to fix the relationship, maybe even fix Diogenes himself, whatever problems lie in his head.

He entered his bedroom and closed the door behind him. The sun was setting, casting an eerie glow around the room. The shadows around the room seemed to move before Aloysius' eyes. Funny how shadows always made him think of his brother. He got the sense that he was being watched. The feeling only grew stronger, and he began to slowly back up towards the door. Just as he saw a large shadow flit across the room, his back was slammed into the door. After one confused, startled moment, Aloysius realized it was Diogenes who was pinning him.

"What are you doing?" he almost shouted at him.

"Frater, we're playing. Like boys do," his voice was low, choked with emotions Aloysius couldn't place.

"Where were you all day? I was looking for you. I am leaving tonight, you know," he said, staring at his brother. They were the same height. Aloysius knew Diogenes would grow to be taller than him soon.

"Looking for me all day and yet you never found me. I'm disappointed. Are all our childhood memories gone from that pretty blonde head of yours?"

"Can you stop talking in riddles for one moment? Release me and let me finish my packing. I have a train to catch," he said this, but he didn't mean any of it. Aloysius wanted nothing more than to find out what his younger brother was talking about last night, and where he was all day, why he was avoiding him. Also, if Diogenes kept growing, this may be the last time Aloysius could look him directly in the eyes, and the last time he has a fighting chance against him. As he thought this Diogenes applied more force to his arms, which were pinned over his brother's chest.

Diogenes removed one of his hands and used it to brush some stray blonde hair away from his brother's ear, leaned in closer and whispered, "I was in Plato's Cave."

"Plato's Cave?"

"You've forgotten," Diogenes said sadly. Aloysius could feel his body slump.

"Of course I haven't! It's under the staircase. We used to build forts there. We had treasure maps and everything!" He was shocked at how excited he was by the memory. Aloysius had no way of knowing that, years from now, he would use Plato's Cave as a memory palace, and as a way to visit his brother in his mind.

With new vigor, Diogenes applied more force to pin his brother to the door. "I knew I had faith left in you for a reason. Aloysius, let us leave together."

"Leave? To where? What are you talking about?"

"Anywhere. We'll start over. We have a lot of lost years to make up for," he said, a glint shining in his good eye.

"Diogenes," Aloysius began. "You have to finish high school. And I just started my studies in England. We can't leave." As much as he knew it was all true, it pained him to say it. A part of him wanted to run off on an adventure with his little brother.

"I thought you would say that. Where is your sense of adventure, Frater?"

Aloysius was starting to become alarmed at the mad gleam in his brother's eye, at the force he was slowly increasing over his body.

"Diogenes, I'm sorry. I'm sorry we pulled away from each other over the years. I don't know why that happened." Now a dangerous look came into his brother's eyes, and Diogenes pulled Aloysius away from the door, only to slam him into it even harder. Diogenes used his hands to pin Aloysius' to the door with the rest of his body, and pinned his hips to his and his chest to his, completely immobilizing him.

"I know why," he sneered, placing his face inches away from Aloysius'. "But you'll never believe me. If you won't come with me now, if you're really leaving, the only thing left to do is hunt you down myself. We need each other Aloysius." His voice was so low, so full of contempt and lust (for revenge?) that his Southern accent was almost non-existent.

"Diogenes," Aloysius started, full of panic now. "There is still time. There is always time. I'll be home again before you know it. And then I'm home for the whole summer. There's still time!" He was begging He knew what his brother was capable of, and he was not about to be on the receiving end of his malice.

"Time is up, Aloysius," was his only reply. His breath, which bared the scent of winter fresh mints, covered Aloysius' ear. A chill was racing up and down his spine. He turned his head to look at his brother, convinced this was about to end in a fight to rival all their boyhood rumbles. He gazed at him, slightly taken aback by how handsome he really is. It's an easy thing to miss when one is so focused on his eyes. The hazel one was beautiful, with hints of gold flecked in them. His lips were full and red. His hair a scarlet tangle falling into his eyes and down his neck. His face so much like his own: high cheekbones, chiseled jaw line. The only difference there was the reddish beard beginning to form. Aloysius felt a slight sickening feeling in his stomach as he realized he was gazing at his brother with a mixture of awe and lust. Disgusting.

Suddenly, Aloysius felt those full lips on his own. Diogenes had aggressively forced his mouth onto his brother's, kissing him deeply. Aloysius tried to pull away, but couldn't. He was pinned to the door, pinned by his brother's strong body. When Diogenes finally pulled away, his face was a mixture of triumph and anticipation.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Don't act like it didn't fire you up," Diogenes drawled. "Everyone experiments from time to time."

"This isn't experimenting, this is..." he didn't know how to finish the sentence. He realized that the kiss had indeed stirred some long ignored feelings in him. It wasn't that he didn't find women appealing, he just never seemed to find the time, or a woman suitable to his physical and intellectual desires. Aloysius wondered if Diogenes was as inexperienced as he was.

Suddenly, Aloysius felt Diogenes' hot breath on his neck, his strong hands running down his chest, playing with the buttons of his shirt. Once again he placed his mouth onto his brother's and kissed. This time, Aloysius leaned into it, even opening his mouth a little when he felt Diogenes' tongue. This was wrong, this was beyond wrong...yet that made it even better.

When Diogenes finally pulled away, Aloysius was trembling. He was shaking with lust, nausea, desire, curiosity, and fear.

"Calm down, Frater. No one needs ever know. This will be our little secret...just like Plato's Cave."

Aloysius began to feel a longing in him. He didn't want to continue with this act, and yet he did. He was burning to feel more, and he didn't want to leave his brother now. But it couldn't go any farther than this. Could it?

"I'm sorry for drifting away from you over the years, Diogenes," Aloysius panted.

"Frater, don't spoil the moment now," Diogenes cooed. He wrapped his hands around his older brother's neck and began rubbing his long fingers up and down the sensitive skin. A cold chill began making it's way down Aloysius' body, then he felt Diogenes places his lips lightly on his again. The kiss was gentle, barely touching lips. Aloysius felt a tingle run through his body, felt his blood rushing to areas it rarely rushed to. Diogenes took notice and smiled devilishly.

"Frater, what have we here?"

Aloysius felt shameful; he had hoped his brother wouldn't notice. Every time his lips touched his, he could feel himself growing harder. Diogenes slowly ran his hands down his brother's chest, simultaneously pressing his hips more firmly into his. Tediously, his hand moved closer and closer to Aloysius' swollen extremity. When he finally placed his palm over it through his pants, Aloysius let out a small moan and jerked backwards.

"Easy now, Frater. Have you never been touched before? Well, nor have I. Just work with me" His voice managed to be soothing and demanding all at once. Aloysius slowly relaxed his body. Now that Diogenes wasn't fully pinning him to the door he was able to lean against it somewhat. However, his younger brother still kept one arm across his chest, bracing him there. He closed his blue eyes and allowed images to swim through his mind as he rocked himself against Diogenes. True, he had never been touched before. The sickening feeling in his stomach was subsiding, being replaced by an urgent need for release. He could feel Diogenes' hand slowly rubbing and tugging at him, bringing him to new brinks. His heart rate increased and he could hear his breathing becoming more rapid, which in turn urged Diogenes to move faster.

Diogenes kept his eyes on his brother. He needed to see his face when he finally had release. He could feel his body begin to jerk, could feel his heart beat on his own chest. Diogenes toyed with the idea of stopping now and walking out, leaving him like this. But no, he wouldn't. They've come too far now. He quickened the movements of his hand and roughly kissed Aloysius, biting his lower lip.

"S-s-stop," Aloysius stammered. "I'm a-about-"

Diogenes cut him off with another firm kiss. His full lips covered Aloysius' mouth. He knew why he wanted him to stop: he didn't want to finish in his pants, like a school boy. Staring him directly in the eyes, Diogenes sped up for the end, forcing him to commit the shameful deed. Aloysius' slight, yet powerful, body spasmed under his brother's. His eyes fluttered closed and he ran his fingernails down the door, scraping paint off as he went.

Diogenes watched intently as his brother regained control of his breathing. He watched as he began picking stray bits of paint out from under his fingernails. More importantly, he watched as Aloysius made every attempt not to look at him.

"Can't look at me, Frater? Ashamed?"

Aloysius mustered up his courage and stared into his brother's eyes. "Not at all. I was only biding my time," he said, nonchalantly.

"Biding your time for what, dear brother?"

Honing in on his natural cat-like grace and skills, Aloysius roughly threw his brother off of him and spun him around, slamming him into the door this time.

"You always felt the need to have control, Frater," Diogenes drawled. "Just know this: I will always be the crocodile, and you will always be Captain Hook," he sneered, laughing slightly.

"What do you mean by that?" He was almost too scared to ask.

"I'll always have a part of you. And you'll always be looking over your shoulder for me. Desperate to find me, but terrified of the day you actually do."

Aloysius stared at his brother, noting how calm and slow his heart beat was. It unnerved him.

"Now," Diogenes said, placing his hands roughly on his brother's shoulders. "On your knees."

Diogenes forced Aloysius down onto his knees and quickly undid his button and zipper. Aloysius stared up at him for a moment, with fight still in his eyes. Diogenes closed his eyes, grabbed the soft hair of his brother's head, and pushed him forward. When he felt his hot mouth wrap around his hard member, he knew the fight was out of him.

Aloysius closed his eyes and performed the unmentionable act. He didn't know why he was doing this, why he was going along with it. A part of him must have been giving in to some primal urge. As he stopped to swallow excess saliva, he took a glance up at Diogenes. His eyes were closed, and he was slowly rocking. One hand laid limp at his side, the other was running its fingers through his blonde hair. Aloysius grasped Diogenes' belt for leverage with one hand, and with his other reached up and grasped his free hand. Diogenes' eyes flitted open as Aloysius' fingers interlocked his own. He grasped back, and closed his eyes again.

Aloysius ran his mouth up and down Diogenes' shaft, occasionally swirling his tongue around. He was trying to imagine what he would enjoy in this situation. Some taboo part of him did not want to let his brother down. Diogenes' moans encouraged him, and he began to work faster. Glancing up, he could see his eyes shutting more tightly, his stomach muscles contracting, and he could feel his heart pulsing faster through his hand, which he gripped tighter. Aloysius tried another tongue trick while sliding his lips up and down, and he felt Diogenes pull hard on his soft hair. Then he felt a warm presence filling his mouth up, mixing with his saliva. Closing his eyes, he swallowed.

Aloysius felt Diogenes' fingers leave his hair, and he released his grip on his belt. However, neither brother broke free of the others hand. Diogenes pulled his older brother up off of his knees and used his free hand to situate his pants. Still holding each others hand, the two brothers stared at each other for a long moment.

"I'll be home again in four months," Aloysius said.

"I won't be here. You already knew that I think."

"It doesn't have to be like this, Diogenes. We can fix everything that went wrong."

"It's too late. We've both already chosen our paths." The sadness in Diogenes' voice was something that would haunt Aloysius forever.

"Our paths will cross, though," Aloysius said, grasping his brother's hand even tighter.

"The crocodile always found his way into Hook's life, one way or the other. Never forget that, Aloysius."

Slowly, their hands broke apart from each other. They stared at one another for a few tense moments until Diogenes turned and left Aloysius' room. Their paths would indeed meet again. He could almost hear the clock ticking.


End file.
